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The Longest Yard Sale

The ninth annual World's Longest Outdoor Sale--covering 21 counties and 450 miles in Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama--will take place Thursday through next Sunday.

The sale was started in 1987 when local officials, looking for ways to draw travelers off nearby interstate freeways and onto local roads, suggested a giant, one-day yard and craft sale. That first effort saw residents of Kentucky and Tennessee set up shop in their front yards for 350 miles along what is known as the 127 Corridor, a north-south route between I-65 and I-75. It passes through some of the region's oldest towns.

As the years went by, the event stretched into Alabama and attracted antique merchants, food vendors and other professional dealers. Organizers say this week's sale should have about 2,000 booths, ranging from commercial tents in parking lots to card tables in farmers' fields, selling everything from quilts, preserves, toys and tools to antiques and furniture.